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Graphical Installer

Overview

The NixOS graphical installer is the recommended path for desktop users. Boot a graphical ISO or USB image—GNOME or Plasma variants from nixos.org/download—and the live desktop starts a Calamares-based wizard that walks through language, location, keyboard, users, desktop choice, unfree software, partitioning, then install. Minimal images boot to a CLI instead; use Manual install.

The flow is local and desktop-oriented: it generates a default configuration.nix and installs to disk. It does not accept a pre-written flake or custom initial config. Remote, automated, or heavily custom layouts use other paths (see When not to use graphical below).

Details

Boot media and firmware

Download a graphical installation image, write it to USB (or burn a CD), and boot from that drive. Prefer UEFI when the machine supports both BIOS and UEFI. The manual notes you will often need to disable Secure Boot in firmware to boot the installer: the live ISO’s EFI bootloader is not signed for your platform’s keys, and there is no signed shim on the media. Exact firmware menus vary (Boot, Security, or Advanced). Post-install Secure Boot—enabling enforcement with signed boot artifacts—is a separate, advanced topic; see Secure Boot and Lanzaboote.

Shortly after boot, leave the default menu entry. The graphical image brings up its desktop and the installer (this can take a while). If you landed on a shell only, you used a minimal image—switch to Manual install. For a command line during install, open Terminal (GNOME) or Konsole (Plasma) from the application menu; you are logged in as nixos with passwordless sudo.

Networking on the live image

The installer downloads packages from binary caches, so networking must work before install completes. Graphical ISO profiles enable NetworkManager; you can configure Wi‑Fi from the desktop settings or with nmtui (also works from a non-graphical session). Check interfaces with ip a; if DHCP is unavailable, configure manually with ip or stop NetworkManager (systemctl stop NetworkManager) for static setup. The generated config does not automatically enable NetworkManager or wireless on first boot—you declare a backend afterward; see Networking.

Installer screens (in order)

  1. Welcome — language for the installer and the installed system. Tip: leave American English if you want error text that is easier to search or report.
  2. Location / timezone — set timezone (you can click the map). The installer may guess location from your public IP.
  3. Keyboard — layout (and model if needed); pick the language you type in most comfortably.
  4. Users — display name, login name, and password; optional automatic desktop login.
  5. Desktop environment — choose a DE, or No desktop for a custom / window-manager setup. If undecided, GNOME or Plasma are both well-tested defaults with different designs.
  6. Unfree software — option to allow unfree packages in the installed system.
  7. Partitioning — easiest path is Erase disk (deletes all data on the selected disk). Also select Swap (with Hibernation) in the dropdown. Optional whole-disk LUKS encryption. Top-left shows whether the installer booted as BIOS or UEFI—if the machine is UEFI but the installer shows BIOS, reboot with the UEFI boot option. Confirm the correct disk; formatting destroys existing data. Dual-boot, multi-partition, ZFS/Btrfs, or other non-whole-disk layouts are outside this wizard—use Manual install and Partitioning and bootloaders.
  8. Summary — review choices, then Install.

When not to use graphical

Situation Prefer
Minimal ISO, custom disk layout, dual-boot with existing OS Manual install, Dual boot and VMs
Install from your flake over SSH to a remote machine nixos-anywhere
PXE/iPXE or rack provisioning Netboot and PXE
Inject a specific initial configuration.nix or flake before first boot Manual install, nixos-anywhere, or custom install media (patterns in nixpkgs installer modules—not the stock graphical wizard)

The graphical path optimizes for “erase disk, pick a DE, go.” It is not a general substitute for declarative remote install tooling.

Duration, generated config, and finish

Installation typically takes about 15 minutes (varies with desktop choice, network, and disk speed). Calamares runs nixos-generate-config and builds the system into the target; generated hardware settings land in hardware-configuration.nix. Later changes go through rebuild / switch / boot / test—the installer does not replace ongoing configuration.

When done, remove the USB drive and reboot into the new system.

After first boot

Firmware and Wi‑Fi. Many laptops need redistributable firmware for Wi‑Fi or audio after install. The graphical “allow unfree” step covers nixpkgs policy, not necessarily hardware.enableRedistributableFirmware; enable it if wireless or sound is missing—see Firmware and microcode.

Desktop tuning. DE-specific services, Wayland vs X11, audio, and fonts are configured in configuration.nix after install. Starting points: Desktop, Wayland and compositors.

Problems. Boot failures, missing network, or rollback needs: Troubleshooting.

Examples

Typical desktop path after booting a graphical ISO:

  1. Boot from USB; disable Secure Boot in firmware if the media will not load under UEFI.
  2. Connect Wi‑Fi (desktop settings or nmtui) if install needs network access.
  3. Welcome → leave American English (or set your preferred language).
  4. Location → timezone; Keyboard → layout.
  5. Users → create account; enable autologin only if you want it.
  6. Desktop → GNOME, Plasma, or No desktop.
  7. Allow unfree if you need proprietary firmware/drivers/apps.
  8. Partitioning → select the target disk → Erase disk → Swap (with Hibernation) → optional LUKS → verify BIOS/UEFI indicator and disk name.
  9. Summary → Install → wait → remove media → reboot.
  10. After first boot: if Wi‑Fi or audio is missing, set hardware.enableRedistributableFirmware = true and rebuild.

For CLI-only media, partitioning by hand, dual-boot, or remote flake installs, use Manual install, nixos-anywhere, and Partitioning and bootloaders.

References

See also